The Government has published the 2025 Spending Review, which sets out departmental budgets up to 2029.

Responding to the announcement, Nick Harrison, CEO of the Sutton Trust, said:

‘It’s encouraging to see funding commitments to support schools, skills and training, youth centres and other facilities for young people. And measures to widen free school meal eligibility, feeding more children from homes that are eligible for Universal Credit, are the right thing to do. It’s also good to see some funding for school-based nurseries.

‘However, the lack of consideration for improving student maintenance continues to concern us. Students from the poorest backgrounds continue to struggle with day-to-day costs, with significant numbers skipping meals and missing classes and deadlines due to having to work to make ends meet.

‘If the Government is serious about genuinely delivering greater opportunities for young people, it must urgently flesh out measures to deliver its mission to ‘break down barriers to opportunities’. It’s not immediately apparent how today’s announcements will be transformational for disadvantaged young people. But given the current fiscal environment, it could have been a lot worse.’

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